Recap: East Carolina vs. UAB

Greenville, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Shane Carden threw three of his five touchdown passes to Reese Wiggins as the East Carolina Pirates coasted to a 63-14 win over the UAB Blazers in a Conference USA matchup at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

Carden completed 21-of-31 attempts for 347 yards and was picked off twice while under center for ECU (8-2, 6-1 C-USA) as it earned its fourth consecutive victory, all of which came by double-digit margins. Wiggins finished with five receptions and 142 yards while Justin Hardy reeled in five catches for 47 yards and a score. Vintavious Cooper also had a monster performance as he racked up 126 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries. Breon Allen contributed 92 yards on 13 totes.

Jonathan Perry paced UAB (2-8, 1-5) as it suffered its fourth setback in a row. Perry connected on 16-of-34 pass attempts for 210 yards and was picked off twice. Perry also added 40 rushing yards and scored on one of his eight carries. Jordan Howard tallied 53 yards on 11 rushing attempts. Jamari Staples recorded a team-high five receptions for 78 yards. Jake Ganus anchored the Blazers' defense with 13 total tackles, one tackle for loss and an interception.

After being intercepted in the red zone, Carden guided the Pirates' offense down the field in four plays to set up a five-yard touchdown pass to Wiggins at the 4:05 mark of the opening period. Carden threw a 55-yard touchdown pass to Wiggins three minutes later to give ECU a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

UAB ended its drought as Darrin Reaves scored on a four-yard run less than a minute into the second stanza. The Pirates then pulled away as Cooper scored on a 26-yard touchdown run at the 12:29 mark of the second frame before punching it in from a yard out with six minutes remaining in the first half.

ECU extended its lead just before the conclusion of the second quarter as Carden found Hardy open on the sideline and hit the C-USA's leading wideout with an 11-yard strike for a score. Warren Harvey's successful extra-point conversion sent the hosts into halftime with a commanding, 35-7, edge on the scoreboard.

The Pirates continued their run into the second half as Cooper crossed the goal line after rushing four yards five minutes after the third quarter kickoff. ECU's defense added to the onslaught as Kyle Tudor returned an interception 50 yards for another six points with just over seven minutes left in the third quarter.

Carden continued to pick apart UAB's defense and completed a six-yard touchdown throw to Bryce Williams in the opening seconds of the final quarter. After allowing ECU to score six unanswered touchdowns, UAB ended the run with 9:30 remaining as Perry broke the plane after a three-yard rush.

The Pirates added another score with five minutes remaining as Carden threw a 17-yard scoring strike to Wiggins.

ECU finished with a 625-354 advantage in total yards of offense and achieved 36 first downs compared to just 17 by UAB.

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